Raja Spice- Brewing A Cup Of Magic

This year we decided to come clean about the name of our Chai inspired blend. For several years we offered up a spiced blend called Raja Chai. But we knew that this was a little disingenuous- a true “Chai” needs to decoct, or slowly simmer/boil the spices before adding the tea, in order to create the strong spice quality we expect.

We wanted to have a blend that spoke to the desire in the community to have a Chai- so we created a new blend and named it Raja Spice. Removing the “Chai” from the name allows this great blend to be what it is- a spicy infusion with black tea. And we are pretty happy about it!

At the same time, we saw the opportunity to also include one of our favorite herbs. Our new blend uses Holy Basil, also called Tulsi. This amazing plant not only has a sweet flavor with spiciness (lending it to particular use in this blend) but also is thought of as an adptogen- a plant that helps regulate body systems to adapt to stress. I remember the first time I tried it- a vivid feeling of calm with a slight euphoric sense came over me.

Along with Holy Basil we kept the beautiful black OP tea leaves we use in our other black blends. With these two ingredients to anchor the blend, we added Ginger, Cloves, Cinnamon and Cardamom. After playing with proportions, we settled on a balance that we think is perfect. The smoothness of the Holy Basil and black tea create a perfect platform to experience the spices- all from a simple steep in hot water just off the boil for 4 minutes.